Saas Fee ski resort

About Saas Fee

Set in a spectacular location, surrounded by the highest mountains in the Swiss Alps, Saas-Fee is made even more magical by the glaciers rising above it, which are snow covered year round, making it popular for summer skiing. Open from mid-July straight through to late April, it has one of the world's longest ski seasons.

The village's high altitude and the dizzying heights not only give Saas-Fee a world-class skiable vertical, but also snowsure slopes. In addition to its natural beauty, it's also relatively peaceful thanks to its car-free status.

Although Saas-Fee has successfully retained its traditional charm, it is also at the cutting edge, particularly with its mountain infrastructure. On the Mittelallalin, the resort holds three world records: the highest underground funicular railway train rising from 3,000m (9,842ft) to 3,500m (11,480ft), the world's highest revolving restaurant and the world's biggest ice cave.

At the end of the day the runs merge with the resort's pedestrisanised streets, lined with enticing restaurants, shops and bars running down away from the snow front to the heart of the resort. The village has spread out over the years and today offers a rich range of accommodations as well as non-skiing attractions.

Location:

Saas-Fee is the largest and highest village in the Saas Valley, which is part of the Alps. The resort can be found within the German-speaking sector of the Swiss canton of Valais in central-southern Switzerland.

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Slopes

On the slopes

Saas-Fee's ski season runs for around nine months of the year, with a unique duration from mid-July straight through to late-April the following spring.

Saas-Fee's extensive ski area is divided into three sectors: Morenia, Plattjen and Längfluh, together offering 100km (63 miles) of runs. Just over a quarter of these are marked easy, half are moderate and the rest are classified as difficult.

Beginners will find nursery slopes next to the village that, thanks to the altitude and snow machines, are usually open all season long. Intermediates have the full area to enjoy, whilst experts will find plenty of challenges, including numerous off-piste routes accessible with a guide. After heavy snowfalls, there are also official freeride slopes that have powder runs. These then develop into moguls as they are never groomed.

Freestyle skiing has been popular here for decades and it's easy to see why with a top quality halfpipe in the summer and parks throughout the year to explore, alongside slopes to suit all abilities.

The Saas-Fee ski pass includes the whole valley with the slopes in Saas-Grund, Saas-Almagell and Saas-Balen – although most guests prefer to spend all of their time solely on Saas-Fee's slopes. There is also an increasingly integrated reciprocal agreement with nearby Zermatt, which may be worth considering for those who are in Saas-Fee for a longer stay.